Moore Capital Management, the hedge fund founded by Louis Bacon, has added six new staff, including a trader who once won a world poker tournament.

The hires at Moore Europe Capital Management, the London office of New York-based Moore Capital, are in portfolio management, investor relations and marketing and form part of its expansion plans, confirmed a source familiar with the appointments.

Luke Sadrian, who was a partner at Brevan Howard Asset Management until late last year, joined Moore Europe in October as a commodities portfolio manager, while James Vogl has joined as a macro portfolio manager.

Five years ago Vogl, then aged 23, won the $400,000 top prize in a World Series of Poker event in Las Vegas after beating more than 800 other players, according to the poker organiser’s website.

Since then, he has moved into the financial world working first at Goldman Sachs and now at Moore Europe, according to the Financial Services Authority’s database of authorised individuals.

Other recent new additions at Moore’s European arm include Richard Blake, formerly a senior portfolio manager at Commerzbank’s fund of hedge funds unit, who joined Moore as director of investor relations for Europe this month.

Jon Amess, who worked in the institutional clients group at fund of hedge funds Olympia Capital Management joined in September in an investor relations role.

The additions come as Moore Europe plots further expansion. It has 59 FSA-registered staff but the company’s most high-profile hire came roughly a year ago when it recruited former GLG Partners star emerging markets manager Greg Coffey.

Coffey’s Moore Emerging Market fund is up 15% for the year to date, while Moore Global Investors, run by Bacon, is up nearly 17.9% for the same period, according to investors.
Moore Capital declined to comment.